BYU football's biggest road wins in school history

As BYU prepares to travel to Camp Randall Stadium to face No. 24 Wisconsin, it's time to look back at the Cougars' biggest road wins.

It's hard enough to beat quality opponents with more than 60,000 fans supporting the Cougars in the friendly confines of LaVell Edwards Stadium. BYU's big wins at home include its 41-37 win over No. 13 Texas A&M in 1996 and its 28-21 upset of No. 1 Miami in 1990.

However, some of BYU's biggest wins have come on the road. After all, what would the 1984 season be without the Cougars' huge win over then-No. 3 Pitt?

Here's BYU's top 10 road or neutral site wins, not including bowl games.

Lafe Peavler is a sportswriter intern at the Deseret News.

Sept. 8, 1979: BYU 18, No. 14 Texas A&M 17

BYU had never won a game against a non-conference ranked opponent before it made the trip to Rice Stadium in Houston to take on No. 14 Texas A&M. The Cougars' prospects looked grim as star quarterback Marc Wilson underwent and appendectomy the week before the game.

But Wilson and BYU would not be denied this chance at making history.

The Cougar defense came up big with a blocked punt and a goal-line stand, and Wilson threw a touchdown pass with just 52 seconds remaining. BYU head coach LaVell Edwards could have sent this game into overtime with an extra point, but instead decided to roll the dice and try for two. BYU converted and held on to win, 18-17.

Oct. 1, 1983: BYU 37, UCLA 35

Deseret News Photo

UCLA wasn't ranked at the time BYU made this trip to the Rose Bowl. In fact, the Bruins hadn't won a single game yet. The Bruins lost to Georgia and Nebraska and tied with Arizona State earlier in the season.

However, this became a very significant win for the Cougars. UCLA would go on to win the Pac-10 as well as the Rose Bowl against No. 4 Illinois. This road win over a solid UCLA squad helped set up BYU's national championship run one year later.

Sept. 1, 1984: BYU 20, No. 3 Pitt 14

This is the game that launched BYU's bid for a national championship.

Pitt was the only ranked opponent the Cougars would face in 1984. BYU would not have risen to No. 1 in both major polls without this win over the No. 3 Panthers on its résumé. After all, BYU jumped from unranked to No. 13 in the AP after this huge road win.

It's also memorable for quarterback Robbie Bosco's 50-yard touchdown pass to Adam Haysbert for the winning touchdown with just 1:37 to go in the game.

True, Pitt wouldn't live up to its lofty ranking and finished with a losing season. However, this game proved that BYU could win on the road against an intimidating opponent, and it earned the Cougars the national notoriety needed to win the national championship.

Sept. 22, 1984: No. 6 BYU 18, Hawaii 13

While the win over Pitt put BYU in contention for the national championship, this game against Hawaii almost derailed any hope of winning it all.

Even though Hawaii was unranked, the Warriors were a formidable opponent to beat on the islands. It looked like BYU's win over Pitt would come to nothing.

Trailing 12-10, Hawaii drove to the BYU two-yard line late in the game, but the BYU defense wouldn't let Hawaii spoil the Cougars' perfect season.

After stopping Hawaii within inches of the end zone on second and goal, linebacker Kyle Morrell timed the snap count perfectly, leapt over the Hawaii offensive line and sacked the quarterback. Hawaii would have to settle for a field goal.

The Cougars scored a touchdown, and the BYU defense held firm again after a blocked punt gave the Warriors the ball on the BYU 16-yard line.

Sept. 7, 1985: No. 10 BYU 28, Boston College 14

Mark Philbrick

Many questioned the legitimacy of BYU's 1984 national championship heading into the 1985 season, and the Cougars needed to prove yet again they could beat quality competition on the road. They did just that by dismantling Boston College, 28-14.

Bosco set a Giants Stadium record with 508 yards passing and four touchdowns. This win proved yet again that the Cougars could win on the road against a quality opponent.

Oct. 15, 1994: BYU 21, No. 17 Notre Dame 14

Anytime a team can steal a win at Notre Dame it's a big deal.

BYU held the Irish to their fewest points since 1986 and knocked Notre Dame out of the national rankings for the first time in eight years. This remains as BYU's only win over Notre Dame in South Bend. Currently, the Cougars are 1-4 at Notre Dame Stadium with another chance coming later this month.

Besides, this was with Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz still roaming the sidelines for the Fighting Irish.

Dec. 7, 1996: No. 6 BYU 28, No. 20 Wyoming 25

It's a shame many BYU fans remember BYU's big 19-15 win over No. 14 Kansas State in the 1997 Cotton Bowl, but overlook the 1996 WAC Championship Game against Wyoming that put the Cougars in such a high-profile bowl game.

After all, the Cowboys were also ranked in the Top 25 and were determined to take the WAC title at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. Wyoming took a late five-point lead, but it gave up an intentional safety to cut the lead to three. Kicker Ethan Pochman hit the game-tying field goal to force overtime, and he would also hit the game-winning kick in overtime.

Sept. 28, 2006: BYU 31, No. 15 TCU 17

BYU didn't just beat the ranked Horned Frogs on the road, the Cougars dominated.

In picking up BYU's first win over a ranked opponent since 1999, quarterback John Beck threw for 321 yards and three touchdowns. Also, TCU was riding a 13-game winning streak coming into this game.

This game helped spark a rivalry that would last the remainder of BYU's time in the Mountain West Conference.

Nov. 25, 2006: No. 23 BYU 33, Utah 31

Even though the Utes weren't ranked, this road win stands out in BYU history.

While the Cougars were the ranked team and the favorite headed into this game, Utah held the home-field advantage as well as a four-game winning streak over its hated rival.

It looked that the Utes would extend that streak to five when Brett Ratliff scored a touchdown to give his team a 31-27 lead with just 1:19 to go.

But Beck, Johnny Harline and the Cougars refused to lose. They drove down the field and Beck found Harline on his knees for the winning touchdown with no time left on the clock. BYU fans went wild while stunned Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium shuffled for the exits.

Sept. 5, 2009: No. 24 BYU 14, No. 3 Oklahoma 13

While the Cougars went into Cowboys Stadium (now AT&T Stadium) ranked No. 24 in the nation, they were heavy underdogs against Big 12 powerhouse Oklahoma. Sooner quarterback Sam Bradford was the defending Heisman Trophy winner, and Oklahoma was a potential contender for the national championship.

All of that changed when BYU's Coleby Clawson ended Bradford's day on a hard hit, which injured his shoulder.

Even without Bradford, however, the Sooners didn't go down without a fight. However, BYU quarterback Max Hall found McKay Jacobson for a seven-yard touchdown to put the Cougars on top with just 3:03 left in the game.